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Posts Tagged ‘2012 Porsche 911’

In creating the new redesigned 2012-2013 Porsche 911 (model code 991), Porsche engineers seemingly thought of everything. Owners can further customize and personalize their world-beating rear-engined sports car with their choice of many exciting options and packages.

For $2,925 you can equip your brand-new 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera or Carrera S with Porsche’s Sport Exhaust System (listen here!), which replaces the standard system’s dual oval outlets with large and protruding quad tips for that tuned look. More than just cosmetic, the sport system brings small but usable gains in power and response, and one helluva exhaust note.

It’s loud and throaty, and activate this handy Sport Exhaust button on the dash and the car’s song more resembles what we would imagine an angry Tyrannosaurus Rex sounded like while chasing down its prey. You’ll be chuckling to yourself as you set off the car alarms of lesser vehicles as you roar past.

Sound like fun? The 2012 Porsche 911 is available now, starting from $82,100 for the Carrera and $96,400 for the Carrera S.

Singer Vehicle Design, founded in 2009, is in the business of restoring classic Porsche 911 cars not just to their original factory specs but taking things a step further, fully modernizing the cars to the customer’s whims and wishes. Singer’s latest build, this jaw-dropping silver example built on the 1990-1994 Porsche 964 platform, is ready for customer delivery.

Singer’s cars offer Porsche lovers the chance to take the best elements from multiple 911 generations. Even though this car is based on the 964, it uses the independent rear suspension, six-speed manual and cross-drilled brake rotors from the later 1995-1998 Porsche 993-series. Components like the KW Automotive adjustable coilover front suspension ensure this car has the performance of modern Porsche, despite its classic lines.

The engine, rear-mounted and air-cooled naturally, is hand built by the performance experts at Cosworth. Displacing 3.8 liters, the flat-six outputs 375 horsepower and 290 lb-ft. of torque without the use of turbocharging. It’s plenty to hustle the Singer 911 from 0-60 in around 4 seconds.

Like to have your own bespoke classic 911 built with the chassis of your choice and gratuitous amounts of air-cooled power? Pricing starts at $220,000 and goes up from there. Way up.

The 2012 GT3 RS 4.0, still based on the previous-gen 911 platform, is priced from $185,950. That car makes 500 horsepower from a naturally aspirated 4.0-liter flat-six engine. Expect the new model to carry over this motor, which is revised for 2012 with greater displacement, with the same power output or greater.

Pricing should start at just under $200,000 when the next GT3, often called the purist’s 911, goes on sale in late 2013/early 2014.

There’s something smugly satisfying about today’s just-for-fun video clip: as you see here, one unlucky (or just clueless) driver of this clean Porsche 911 seems to have become hopelessly stuck… in wet cement. Thanks to some quick-thinking and helpful construction workers, and some wooden planks, driver and Porsche are able to get moving without too much trouble, leaving behind a nasty scar in the pavement and one mucked-up 911 that was hopefully de-cemented as quickly as possible.

#8 – 2012 Porsche 911

The new 2012 Porsche 911, carrying internal model designation 991, marks the biggest evolution of the 911 platform since the switch to water cooling during the Clinton administration and some key advances for Porsche’s hallowed rear-engined sports car.

The 991 grows considerably over its predecessor, though its overall styling shows a subtle evolution of classic 911 lines rather than shaking things up too much. Wheelbase has increased 3.9 inches while overall length is up 2.8 inches. The rear wheels have been moved back 3 inches relative to the position of the engine, creating more stable cornering in the hands of your average driver.

First out of the gate will be the base Carrera with its 3.4-liter flat six-cylinder making 350 horsepower and the Carerra S, making an even 400 horsepower from its 3.8-liter flat six. Porsche will then roll out the inevitable countless variations, adding all-wheel drive, convertible and targa tops, track-focused equipment and turbocharged power.

A new 7-speed conventional manual transmission will be the first of its kind fitted to a production vehicle, while Porsche will continue to offer its PDK 7-speed dual-clutch automated manual transmission. Either transmission will send power to the rear wheels, though all-wheel drive will follow in the Carrera 4.

The 991 will be built alongside the current-generation 997 for a time as more variations make their debut on the new platform, including the inevitable track-ready GT2 and GT3 versions. The new 911 will go on sale in February 2012 priced from $82,100 for the Carrera and $96,400 for the Carrera S.

#7 – 2012 BMW 3-Series

The BMW 3-Series is quite possibly the most award-winning car of all time, making Car and Driver’s 10 Best List for the past 21 consecutive years and winning countless converts as a sublimely handling, truly luxurious compact sport sedan. Early next year we’ll be treated to the all-new F30 3-Series, which will debut in rear-wheel drive 328i and 335i sedan variants.

The new 3-Series grows in length, width, interior size and cargo capacity while actually shaving weight. Design-wise, changing a great thing is always dangerous but BMW’s new design language has trickled down to create the best-looking BMW model among the current crop, its sharply raked hood extending backwards toward a nicely executed package that avoids looking chunky despite the model’s larger dimensions. Its stance has broadened and its structure is 10% more rigid. And it still handles like a dream.

Under the hood the big news is BMW’s new twin-turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder, which replaces the 3.0-liter inline six in the 328i and is also found in the 528i and Z4. With 240 hp and 260 lb-ft. of torque, the new motor bests the outgoing six’s totals by a fair margin.

The upscale 335i will continue to use BMW’s excellent turbocharged 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder, making 300 horses and 300 lb-ft. of torque. A new ActiveHybrid 3 will follow in fall 2012, as will diesel-powered and xDrive all-wheel drive models.

Base pricing for the 328i will start at $35,795 with the 335i starting at $43,295 when the sedan models see their release in February 2012.